Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Mixed Martial Arts Training Should Include Conditioning & Strength Training

By Rod Bourgoine


While improving your skills in various forms of martial arts is important for all MMA athletes, part of your gym time should be dedicated to strengthening and conditioning. So while you might really love taking that Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class or your Judo class, your strength-training classes could be just as important to your fight training.

While these two elements are often combined into one class, each has its own exercises and purpose. Strength training exercises obviously focus on gaining strength in all parts of the body, while conditioning is typically cardiovascular in nature. Your cardio might include running, jumping rope or anything else that increases the heart rate and improves your endurance.

When one thinks about strength training, you might think the focus is primarily on lifting weights, but this is simply not the case. While you will use weighted equipment among other items, you are focusing on many areas of strength, such as improving the power of your punching or increasing your ability to hold a position, such as chokehold or armbar, which helps you overcome an opponent.

A good gym will provide strength and conditioning classes with plenty of different activities as options. For example, your gym should have equipment such as dumbbells, barbells and kettle bells as well as different weights of medicine balls. In addition, you might find rope climbing apparatus, chains, strength bands and much more. This variety not only will help you become stronger but also to become more agile, which is a huge advantage in the ring.

Before you set a workout schedule, spend some time talking with an instructor or trainer at your MMA gym. They can help you select the right amount of classes and the right kind of classes depending on your goals. A good rule of thumb is to take two strength/conditioning classes and then perhaps three more classes, perhaps two in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and then perhaps add a Judo or Muay Thai or Boxing class to round it all out. You also can do some cardio outside of the gym, such as hiking, swimming or biking.

Because you want to take a mix of classes during the week, select an MMA gym that allows you take as many classes as you want per month for one price. Not only will this provide you with a low-cost way to try new types of classes, you'll get into fighting shape faster the more you can work out. In addition, your San Diego mixed martial arts gym also should have qualified instructors with actual experience as either an MMA fighter or in tournaments in their specific martial art.




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